Is there a spiritual gift of giving / generosity?

There are many members, not heads. Again no one is to go beyond his measure. Each is to wait on his ministry, whatever it may be; let him stick to that one thing, and not attend to everything else. He that gives, let him do it with simplicity; he that ministers is to wait on his ministry to do the work he has to do (and let him not attempt anything else), as he that exhorts on exhortation. God may give one person half a dozen gifts. One may be an evangelist only; one may exhort and move the conscience; and another may teach. The manifestation of the Spirit is given to profit withal. (See Rom. 12.)

Coming to the individuals, teachers and exhorters are mentioned. A prophet did exhort (1 Cor. 14:3). Distinctness of service in the ministry of the Word is here recognised and enjoined, not apparently as correcting some wrong practice in Rome, or introducing anything new, but as enforcing that with which they were previously acquainted. We see, then, that in apostolic days a man was not necessarily endowed with a gift, charisma, both for teaching and for exhorting. Room was to be given for the exercise of each gift, and each one was to keep to that service with which he had been entrusted by God. Well would it have been had this been constantly remembered and acted upon. As to other kinds of ministry, individuals are here also recognised, the instrument for service being mentioned, and not merely the character of service being described. "He that gives, let him do it with simplicity (or, liberality); he that rules, with diligence; he that shows mercy, with cheerfulness." The spirit in which these different services should be performed is noted. Simplicity in giving, diligence in ruling, cheerfulness in showing mercy. Ruling is mentioned. To what does it refer? To ruling at home, or in the assembly? Which? Both are mentioned in the New Testament. 1 Tim. 3:4-5, 12 treats of the former, 1 Thess. 5:12; 1 Tim. 5:17 of the latter. We believe the latter is referred to, though some have negatived such a thought. To refer it to a man ruling his own house seems unsuitable, coming in, as it undeniably does, connected with services rendered outside the household. And since all who ruled in the assembly did not necessarily labour in the Word, as 1 Tim. 5:17 informs us, the mention of any engaged in ruling or presiding in the assembly may fitly find a place in connection with labourers in the Word, whilst at the same time being plainly distinguished from teaching or exhorting.

Romans 12:8. "Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity." The teacher has chiefly to do with the understanding, the exhorter with the conscience. It requires great grace to be an exhorter, and equally great grace to receive the word of exhortation. The gift is now rare in the church of God. Few have grace to bring the keen edge of the word down upon the conscience, and at the same time make the person feel that love rules, and that his good is the only object in view. Exhortation includes admonition, consolation; urging to practical duties, dissuading from the neglect of duty, pointing out shortcomings, applying the promises or the threatenings of scripture as the case may be. But we need not dwell on the difficulties of the exhorter, and the still greater difficulty of submitting to the exhortation. They must be apparent to all. Personal feelings are apt to arise and false motives to be imputed; still, the apostle presses the exercise of the gift as needed and wholesome for the members of the body of Christ. The Lord grant that in this day of high-mindedness, of insubjection to the word of God, our lives may be a constant testimony to the will of Christ, and our diligent attention to the things of the Lord both publicly and privately, a constant exhortation to our fellow-Christians. Then it will be not only, Do as I say, but do as I do.

"He that giveth, let him do it with simplicity." The apostle is here speaking of gifts, not of office; and of the manner in which the various duties of Christians, as members of one body, ought to be performed. He whose gift is riches, and who giveth of his substance for the wants of the poor, or the work of the Lord, is to do it with simplicity. Here pause a moment, my soul; allow thyself to be arrested by this weighty caution. Nothing is more difficult than to distribute money according to this word of the Lord. "Simplicity" here means "singleness of heart, fearing God;" and again, "In singleness of your heart, as unto Christ." (Col. 3:24; Eph. 6:5; 2 Cor. 1:12.) How searching is the word of God! It guards against ostentation, love of praise, wrong motives, improper objects; and on the other hand, it warns us against all evasive pretexts, such as, "Not convenient, I have so many calls, I am not able to give." At the same time, the Christian is but a steward, whether he distributes what may be called his own, or the bounty of the church, and he is entitled to look for "simplicity and godly sincerity" in the applicant as well as in himself. There are many plausible appeals made for money, which, when carefully examined, are found to be neither simple nor sincere. He must also watch against the artful pleader putting his soul in bondage, and making him unhappy. There is only one remedy for all the difficulties connected with giving, as for all other things The giver must walk before the Lord with purity of motive, free from all improper designs, and waiting to do His will with an honest, impartial simplicity. When the eye is single, the whole body is full of light; perplexity with darkness flees away, the mind of God is discerned, and the clear light of heaven shines on the steward's way.

Service is mentioned next. This is to be rendered in humility and according to the measure of faith as God has dealt to every man, who is a believer. Here the body, that is, the church, is touched upon. In first Corinthians and Ephesians the truth concerning the church and the different gifts is more fully revealed. All believers are members of that body, and as in the human body not all members have the same office, so in the one body there are different gifts bestowed by grace. Each must take his place given to him in that body and render the service unto which he is called and thus demonstrate the divine truth, that we are one body in Christ, and individually members one of the other. Ministry in the Word stands first and there is also ministry in other ways. The latter are, giving, ruling (or leading) and showing mercy. Giving is to be in simplicity (or liberality); ruling is to be in diligence and showing mercy in cheerfulness. The emphasis here is not so much upon the different gifts as it is upon the faithful exercise of the gift.

Next we have: "He that giveth, let him do it with simplicity." That has been variously put as liberality, but, in fact, the two things are very similar. A man that gives simply will do it liberally. The need will appeal to him and the love that is in him be aroused by the need; and true love is wise; there is no blindness about it. Divine love is, in fact, never separate from divine wisdom.

The expression employed to encourage us is striking. He "giveth to all freely and reproacheth not." Wisdom no doubt is primarily what is sought, as it is in our trials peculiarly requisite; but the Holy Spirit is pleased to enlarge our expectation, that we may know better "the giving God," "the unreproaching God." And a word is used here to characterise Him, to which the apostle Paul exhorts the Christian in his giving (Rom. 12:8): "He that giveth, in simplicity." For how often do mixed motives seek entrance into the heart in giving! Liking rather than love here, dislike hindering there, self-importance, regard for character, sympathy with others on the one hand, and on the other prudential or unbelieving fear under questionable pleas. Hence the call on the giver among us to give with simplicity. Singleness of eye here as elsewhere promotes love, as it ensures light; and the issue is liberality. And so the various English versions agree, from Wiclif to the Authorised. For both Wiclif and Purvey give the primary meaning "in simpleness," Tyndale, Cranmer, and the Geneva, "with singleness"; Rheims "in simplicity," and the Auth. "with simplicity." Again, Wiclif, and the Wiclifite have in our text "largeli," Tyndale and Cranmer "indifferently," Geneva "freely," Rheims "abundantly," and the Auth. "liberally": all of them a secondary meaning. Of these "freely" seems to suit God best, as flowing readily from the primary force which hardly befits Him, while it well becomes us. And it may be added that these respective meanings are in excellent keeping with the writers; of whom Paul looks at the inner source, James rather at the result.

330 Let us turn to Romans 12. The apostle, after exhorting every man to think soberly of himself, according as God had dealt to every man the measure of faith, for that we are all members of the same body (a point we will, D.V., touch on presently) adds, "having then gifts differing according to the grace given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith, or ministry on ministering, or he that teacheth on teaching, or he that exhorteth on exhortation; he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness." Now I ask, is it possible (if the apostle had the idea of gift which the writer has) that such a passage would have been found? Could he have spoken of ministry — not of the word properly, but of any service to the saints — teaching, exhortation, giving, and ruling, and then pass on to what are fruits and the walk of grace, heading all with the word 'gift' (charisma), "Having therefore received gifts," if such a thought had been in his mind as the writer insists on?

In Rom. 12 we have the same thing, though from another point of view. "For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every one that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to each one a measure of faith. For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office; so we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, [let us prophesy] according to the proportion of faith; or ministry, [let us wait] on our ministry; or he that teacheth, on teaching; or he that exhorteth, on exhortation; he that giveth, [let him do it] with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that showeth mercy, with cheerfulness." God's dealing to each was looked to, and not a mere human commission to one, or to a few. Hence faith came in, and each is exhorted to think soberly of himself, and to use what God has given him instead of pretending to more. We see not one member absorbing all the gifts, or hindering others, but many members, and yet but one body, having gifts differing, and exhorted to employ them, not merely through love, because we are every one members one of another, but because of the grace given on God's part.

But this clears the way at once. There is first of all the ministry of the gospel, next there is the ministry of the church. But when we come to look at the ministry of the church, there are many different kinds of it. Take for instance what we have in the verses read. "Having, then, gifts differing," as it is said, "according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, [let us prophesy] according to the proportion of faith, or ministry, [let us engage] in ministry, or he that teacheth, in teaching; or he that exhorteth, in exhortation. He that giveth, [let him do it] with simplicity (or, liberality); he that ruleth, with diligence; he that showeth mercy, with cheerfulness."

"Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, [let us prophesy] according to the proportion of faith; or ministry, [let us wait] on [our] ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, [let him do it] with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that showeth mercy, with cheerfulness" (Rom. 12:6-8).